NAME: Drew Barrymore
BORN: 22/02/1975
BIRTH PLACE: Culver City, California


BIOGRAPHY

Drew Barrymore is the archetypal Hollywood child star who seduced audiences at the age of 6, went into drug rehab at 16 and, at 26, was back in the limelight with starring roles in big budget movies, securing the position as one of Hollywood's best loved blonde sweethearts.

Drew's career began early. As a baby she acted in TV adverts and her TV-movie debut came at the age of five, playing Leslie Bogart as a child, in 'Bogie'.

It was Steven Spielberg's 1982 blockbuster 'ET: Extra-Terrestrial', that brought cute blonde Drew, aged 6, to the attention of moviegoers worldwide.

She played Gertie, the little girl who welcomes ET into her family.

Many assumed that her talents would help her blossom into a successful adult actress but these dreams weren't realised when Drew started drinking at an early age - some claim she was involved with alcohol aged nine.

Following some average film successes, Drew added smoking marijuana to her list of vices. Her alcohol and drug abuse lasted through her teens and finally, in 1989, she was institutionalised in a rehab centre/mental institution, following a failed suicide attempt.

After her treatment, Drew lived with musician and recovering addict David Crosby, and his wife Jan, for almost a year, and at the age of 15, she filed papers to become legally emancipated from her parents, in order to work the same hours as 18-year-olds.

In 1991, Drew moved in briefly with film director Tamra Davis and her husband, and was offered her first starring role in a feature film soon after.

'Poison Ivy' was the story of two rebellious teens and their sexual awakening.



Her singing voice was dubbed but her acting was critically praised.

The turn of the millennium brought big things for Drew. She produced and starred, along with Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu, in the big screen version of the 1970s TV series 'Charlie's Angels'.